Hope Brought Us Together
by MysticManhattan
Summary: One-Shot. If you haven't watched The Originals Season 1 Finale, STOP READING NOW! Klaus starts running once the baby is saved. Where will he take her? What will happen when he gets there? Who can he trust? Similarities and differences to the season finale. Read the a/n before reading the story for background information.


**STOP READING HERE IF YOU HAVEN'T WATCHED THE SEASON FINALE OF THE ORIGINALS! This is your last warning::: SPOILERS AHEAD…**

**Ok, so I'm not really a one-shot type of person, but I just really felt like writing this after watching the season finale. In my version, Hayley doesn't come back, and Klaus doesn't give the baby to Rebekah to protect. Instead, he goes to… well, you'll see :) This is obviously a made up extension from the finale. You'll see some similarities, but just pretend it happens after they saved the baby. Also, my version doesn't include everything that happened in the finale (Esther, Finn, Mikael, Davina, Cami (BOOO!), etc.), and unlike my other stories the characters are vampires, hybrids, and witches. I hope you enjoy, because in my mind, this would have been an amazing ending to the season. Happy reading…**

**Disclaimer: I do not own TVD, The Originals, or any of their characters…**

* * *

Klaus ran without looking back. He didn't know what he was going to do or where he was going to go. All he knew was that he needed to get the little bundle in his arms to safety. To say he was scared would have been an understatement, but he would never admit it. Nothing was supposed to scare the most dangerous being on the planet, but what could possibly happen to the only hope he still held onto did. So he continued to run.

He worried that Elijah might be angry with him for disappearing from New Orleans without so much as a word, but he figured he would understand. Besides, Klaus felt like Elijah needed some time alone. Elijah blamed Klaus for Hayley's death, and at this point, there was nothing Klaus could do to offer him any comfort. Klaus would just have to call his older brother when he knew it was safe.

As for Marcel, Klaus didn't really feel like he owed him any explanations. Sure, Marcel helped Klaus save his child, but Klaus would never forget that Marcel was the reason Mikael came to New Orleans all those years ago. So instead of repairing their relationship to where it had once been, Klaus just considered them even. Klaus knew that Marcel would try to rebuild his town, but that was the last thing on his mind.

As Klaus continued to run, he realized that he was arriving at an all too familiar place. He wondered why he would be going to a town that he knew was filled with so many people that disliked him when he could have gone somewhere where no one even knew his name. But when he stood on the porch facing a white door with a glass design, he knew exactly why he had ran to Mystic Falls.

Klaus walked up to the door and knocked, hoping that she was home alone. He knew that if his heart was still beating, it would be pounding out of his chest and his palms would be sweating. He could hear footsteps in the house at the same time the baby in his arms started to whimper. He gently tried to calm the infant as he waited.

Caroline swung the door open, not bothering to look out of the window first. When she saw him standing on her porch, her brow furrowed and her mouth dropped open. "Klaus?"

"Hello, Caroline." Klaus looked at the blonde in front of him and realized how much he had missed her. The baby began whimpering again as she nuzzled into his arm.

Caroline's eyes fell on the blanket in his arms and her eyes widened. "Klaus! Why do you have a baby?" She stepped out on the porch, her anger visibly rising. "Who did you take it from?"

Klaus wanted to smile at her typical reaction, but he couldn't find it in himself. Instead, he looked around, still paranoid. "I didn't take her from anyone, sweetheart. I'll explain everything if you will please just let us in."

Caroline's blue eyes narrowed as she thought about whether or not to believe him, but in the end, she knew she couldn't turn him away. "Come on in." She led him into the house.

He looked around the house one last time before disappearing inside. He couldn't be too careful, not with his own daughter.

"Ok, spill." Caroline crossed her arms over her chest and stood, waiting for Klaus to explain where the baby had come from.

Klaus listened to see if he could hear her mother's heartbeat, and when he couldn't, he decided they were alone. He sighed, really wishing he had kept her up to date with what was going on back in New Orleans. "She's mine."

Caroline's eyes widened. "How? We can't have children. We are vampires."

"I'm a hybrid, love, which means I'm half werewolf." He began to explain everything that had happened with Hayley and the shock that he had gotten when she explained that she was carrying his child.

"So where is Hayley?" Caroline was shocked, and it wasn't her child. She couldn't imagine how surprised Klaus would have been.

Klaus looked down at his sleeping daughter who resembled her mother. "The witches killed her and I couldn't do anything about it. That's why I had to take my daughter and run. They wanted her. Hayley was just in their way."

Caroline almost fell in the seat that was beside her, her hand covering her mouth. "I'm so sorry, Klaus." Tears filled her blue eyes.

Klaus shook his head. "Don't apologize to me. This is all my fault. Now my daughter has to grow up without her mother, and my brother has to live without the woman he loves."

Caroline wanted to comfort him, but she didn't know how. Yes, they had a moment before, but she thought she would never see him again. Now, he was in her living room with a baby looking scared and lost, and all she wanted to do was wrap her arms around him. "It's not your fault, Klaus. It's the witches' fault."

"Stop! It's my fault." Klaus snapped at her, causing the baby in his arms to stir. He felt defeated as he tried and failed to get the baby back to sleep. Instead, she started to cry.

Caroline knew absolutely nothing about babies, but when she saw him struggling, she held out her hands. "Here, let me try."

Klaus looked at her, unsure about whether or not to trust anyone with his child.

"Klaus, you know me. You know I would never hurt your baby. You came to me for a reason." Caroline continued holding her hands out. "Just let me try."

He glanced at the crying baby again and then nodded. He handed her over to Caroline.

She stood up and walked around the room with the child, slowly swaying. "Hello, baby." She tried to act like she knew what she was doing. She then glanced up at Klaus. "What's her name?"

Klaus hadn't thought about it, but he knew instantly what it had to be. "Hope. Her name is Hope."

"Hope?" Caroline's brow furrowed. "It's a pretty name, but may I ask why?"

"Because she is my family's hope. She's my hope. A chance for me to be a better person for her."

Caroline smiled to herself, touched by Klaus' words. She looked down at the curly haired baby who was still crying. "It's so nice to meet you, Hope. My name is Caroline."

Klaus watched as Caroline tried to soothe his daughter. He wanted to be at peace, but he honestly didn't know if they were safe. He walked over to the window and looked outside, still making sure that no one followed them from New Orleans. As he scanned the front yard, he heard singing from behind him and the baby instantly quieted down. He turned to see Caroline cradling the newborn and couldn't fight the smile that crept onto his face this time.

After the baby fell asleep, Caroline looked up to see that Klaus was still watching her. "What?" She asked, embarrassed by the way he was looking at her.

"You have a beautiful voice." He leaned against the wall behind him, finally letting some serenity filter in.

Caroline knew that if she could, she would have blushed. Instead, she looked down and pushed a curl behind her ear. "Thank you."

"I think she will be getting hungry soon." Klaus broke the silence.

Caroline's eyes met his. "Do you know what to feed her?"

Klaus hadn't really thought about it. His main goal was just to get her out of New Orleans. "Baby formula, I suppose."

Caroline let a giggle escape her lips.

"What's so funny?" Klaus pushed away from the wall.

"I would never have believed you in the past if you would have said we would be having this conversation right now. You talking about baby formula."

Klaus shrugged. "You don't by any chance have some around the house do you?"

Caroline gave him a look that suggested he was out of his mind. "Maybe we should call my mom and see what kind of formula to get."

"We can't call anyone. No one can know that I'm here." Panic flashed on Klaus' face.

"We have to do something. She's going to be hungry, and we need to go get her formula." Caroline looked down at Hope and smiled. Regardless of what Klaus thought, Caroline could see him in almost every part of the baby's face.

Klaus began pacing. "Can't we have one of your friends go pick it up? Or maybe your mother could pick it up for us."

Caroline rolled her eyes. "If I have one of my friends go pick it up, then they are going to know that you're here because they will start asking questions. And my mom's at work. Besides, at least if I call my mom, it will only be her that knows and she won't tell anyone."

Klaus growled in annoyance.

Caroline walked over to him, so they were toe to toe. "I'll go get it alone. You stay here with Hope." She handed the baby to her father.

Hope immediately began to cry and Klaus looked worried all over again.

"I wasn't meant to be a father. Even my own child cries when she's with me."

Caroline laid her hand on his arm. "Calm down. She's not crying because of you." Caroline rubbed the baby's face with her free hand and began to softly sing again, causing the baby to fall back asleep.

She grabbed her keys and her purse. "I'll be right back. I'm going to try to find some formula."

Klaus nodded, but was nervous about being alone with his daughter. When he was running, he was on a mission, but now fatherhood was starting to really kick in.

* * *

Caroline walked through the door thirty minutes later with multiple bags. She made her way into the living room where Klaus was sitting on the couch with Hope in his arms watching television. She entered the room and sat the bags down on the coffee table.

"I was beginning to wonder if you were ever coming back." Klaus said as he turned off the television.

"Sorry," Caroline replied as she began pulling out the contents of her bags. "I got formula, bottles, diapers, wipes, and some pajamas. It's not much, but it should last until you can get to the store."

Klaus looked in admiration at the blonde in front of him. He wouldn't have thought of all that stuff and he was Hope's father, but Caroline was making sure he was prepared. "Thank you, love. I didn't even think of all of that."

Caroline smiled sadly. "You've had a lot going on today. It's the least I could do."

As if Hope heard Caroline's voice, she began to whimper, waving her little arms in the air.

"I'll go get a bottle ready." Caroline walked into the kitchen and began filling the bottle up with water. Her eyes started filling up with tears at the realization of what she was doing. She wiped them as she turned to walk back into the living room, and she nearly dropped the bottle because Klaus was standing right beside her. She put her hand over her non beating heart, as if to slow it down.

"What's wrong?" Klaus' brow creased in concern.

"You scared me, that's what's wrong. I didn't even hear you come in."

Klaus shook his head. "I meant, why are you crying?"

Out of reflex, Caroline wiped her eyes again. "It's nothing."

"Please," Klaus wasn't going to drop it. "Tell me."

Caroline walked past him, too embarrassed to look him in the eye as she explained. "I just never thought I'd be filling up a bottle for a baby because I can't have kids. I mean, I know that Hope isn't mine, but I'm still getting to care for her, even if it's just for a bit." She waved her hand. "It's stupid. Nothing to cry over."

Klaus grabbed her arm with his free hand and tugged so that she would turn towards him. When she was looking at him, he gently grabbed her chin. "It's not stupid. When you become a vampire, not having children is one of the hardest obstacles to get over. I never knew what love was and I didn't think I would be a good parent, so I never wanted children. You, on the other hand, would make a wonderful mother."

Caroline felt the tears welling up in her eyes again, and she was thankful that Klaus wasn't forcing her to look at him as she pulled her head away and tried to hide her face. "I think you should try to feed Hope." She stated, changing the subject.

"You're probably right." Klaus walked back into the living room and took a seat.

Caroline handed him the bottle she had mixed and took a seat beside him as he attempted to feed Hope for the first time. Thankfully, the baby took the bottle without any problems, and she sucked the contents down like she was starving.

"I can't believe you're sitting on my couch right now, and I definitely can't believe you're holding a baby." Caroline told him as she continued to watch him feed his daughter.

Klaus looked over at her before he answered. "I didn't know where to go, and somehow I ended up on your doorstep."

Caroline didn't know if she should admit it, but it slipped out before she could stop it. "I'm glad you did."

Klaus' eyes widened in surprise. He never thought he would hear her say that. "But you made me promise that you would never see me again."

"Did you intend to keep that promise?" She looked down at her hands that were intwined in her lap.

Klaus smirked. "Of course not."

Caroline had to refrain from playfully hitting him in the arm because that's where Hope was still situated. "If I never saw you again, I would have never met Hope." She placed her finger in the baby's hand, and Hope grabbed onto it.

* * *

Later that night, Caroline led Klaus to her room as she carried the bassinet inside. "You two can sleep in my room," she told him as they entered.

"Where will you sleep?" He asked, knowing that there was no way he was getting any sleep tonight.

She shrugged. "I'll figure it out." She placed the bassinet beside the bed.

"We will be out of your way as soon as possible." Klaus told her as he walked over to the bassinet and laid the sleeping baby inside.

Caroline leaned against the door frame. "You two are not in my way. Besides, where will you go?"

Klaus thought about it as he watched his daughter sleep. "Possibly back to the mansion, or maybe to a different town where no one knows who I am."

"The Klaus I know doesn't run," she whispered.

"If it was just me, I wouldn't be running. Now, I have another person to protect." Someone that he couldn't lose.

Caroline walked back to the bed and took a seat on the edge. "You can't go back to the mansion. Anyone can walk in there. At least here, no one can come in unless they are invited."

Klaus shook his head. "We aren't just dealing with vampires. Witches, vampires, and werewolves will all be trying to take her."

Caroline couldn't stand the thought of him leaving again. She had made that promise to herself months ago that she was never going to let herself fall for Niklaus Mikaelson, and she was doing fine since he kept his promise of staying away, but seeing him ruined her plans. She couldn't watch him, or that little girl, walk away from her. "Just stay here. You aren't in the way."

"Caroline, I probably shouldn't have come here in the first place. If I'm not in New Orleans, Mystic Falls will be the first place they look for me." He stood in front of her.

"So you're just going to leave?" She began to get upset. "You can't just keep running! That's not a life for Hope."

"I'll stop when I'm sure that I'm in a location that no one will expect us to be in."

Caroline stood up, throwing her arms in the air only to let them slap her legs when they fell. "Well then I guess this is it. Goodbye Klaus." She started to storm out of the room, but Klaus was much quicker than she was.

He was confused at her reaction. Klaus thought she would be happy to see him go, but he couldn't tell if she was angry or upset, or both. He stood in front of her, trying to read her emotions, but failing because she was doing her best to hide them. "You don't understand, Caroline. I don't have a choice. I have to get Hope away from any danger."

"I do understand, Klaus. Just because she's not mine, doesn't mean that I don't want her safe. But that doesn't mean you have to disappear either." Caroline tried to step around him, but he caught her again.

"What would you like me to do then? Because I don't see another option." Klaus could finally see that she was upset, and that bothered him.

Caroline knew she was being selfish. His daughter was more important than whatever game it was that they were playing. She shook her head. "Just go." This time, Klaus was too surprised to stop her from leaving the room.

She walked into the guest bedroom across the hall and crawled under the covers, too upset to change or wash her face. She didn't think it should hurt this bad, especially when it was someone that she was supposed to hate and a baby that she just met. But it did. It felt like her heart was breaking. She felt a single tear roll down her face and land on her pillow as she laid there thinking about what Klaus would be like as a father. He would obviously do anything for his daughter.

This time, she heard him enter the room, but he didn't break the silence.

"You said I would have been a great mother, but you know that you're going to be a great father, right?" She whispered, knowing that he could hear her perfectly. After a few seconds, she felt the opposite side of the bed sink as he took a seat.

Klaus sighed. "I hope you're right."

Caroline turned so that she was facing his back. "You already love her so much. I can see it every time you look at her."

"I'm sorry I can't stay."

She was surprised to hear him apologize, but knew that it was only because he was alone with her. "Don't be sorry. It's selfish of me to ask you to."

Klaus turned so that he could see her face. "If it wasn't for her, I probably wouldn't have come back. At least not this soon."

Caroline smiled. "I guess Hope brought us together then."

"Come with us." He blurted out before he could stop himself because he knew if he thought about it too much, he wouldn't say it.

Caroline rose from the pillow. "What?" She was shocked that he would even ask.

"Come with us," He repeated.

She thought about saying no because she knew she was supposed to go back to college after summer break and all of her friends were in Mystic Falls, but everything inside of her was telling her to go, especially her heart. "Ok."

"Ok?" Klaus had hoped she would agree, but he didn't think she would take him up on his offer. She hadn't in the past, so he wanted to double check that he heard her right.

"Yes, ok. I will go with you." She smiled.

And before he could stop himself, Klaus' lips landed on hers. He started to pull away, but felt her kissing him back, so he continued to kiss her until he heard his daughter cry for him in the next room.


End file.
